Skincare Routine: November 2012

Behind the scenes

I've been meaning to do a post on my skincare routine for quite a while now (the photos were take on a sunny day in September!) I've been building my current skincare routine since early 2012. I have gradually introduced new products into the routine and continue using products that worked for me and gotten rid of those that don't. As a result, I now have a fairly solid skincare routine that I have been using since mid-summer. I am extremely happy with it and will continue using most of the products for quite a long time to come. That doesn't mean I'm not going to try anything new ever again but for my main items - cleansers, moisturisers and make-up removers - I am content not to be on the lookout for new alternatives. Items like scrubs and masks, I'm not quite as loyal to but still extremely happy with my current choices. 

Firstly a quick skin bio. I have had dry skin all my life. Just about a year and half ago I started to get more and more breakouts and about this time last year my skin was in a very bad state. My whole face was throbbing with the amount of active breakouts on the lower half of my face, I couldn't even sleep on my side it was so bad. This was certainly a shock to my system having gone through my entire teens with about two spots a year. I went to the doctor and got a prescription which was the main thing that helped to clear up my acne and get it out of my system. It took from November 2011 to February 2012 to clear up to any kind of normality but once the active stuff was over with, I was still left with a visual mess of angry, red, scarring and discoloration. That's when my skincare routine sprang into action.

All the products

It does seem like I use an insane amount of products but I have tried using barely anything to using even more than this as well as using extremely expensive products and extremely cheap products. What I have now is my happy medium and it has been working extremely well for me.  

Morning Routine

(1)Using a facial wash in the morning just dries out my skin so I just cleanse instead. I use the La Roche Posay Toleriane cleanser and I find it both gentle and effective.

(2)When I feel the need to, I follow that up with the Kiehls Cucumber Toner which is the gentlest toner I have ever used. 

(3)Most mornings, unless I have used the Kiehls toner, I will spritz my face with the Caudalie Beauty Elixir. I find it very refreshing although the smell does take a while to get used to. 

(4)While I wait for this to sink in I apply the Origins Gin Zing eye cream to the eye area. I've been using this for most of the year and I must say, the longer I use it the more I like it.

(5)Finally I apply my moisturiser, which is another La Roche Posay product, the Toleriane moisturiser. This is a fantastic moisturiser for dry skin, it's thick yet still sinks in quickly enough to make it suitable for a daytime moisturiser.

And that's it for the morning!

Night Routine

(1)The first thing I do is remove my make-up with Bioderma. Bioderma has been extremely hyped up in the beauty world this year and I have to say that it is definitely worth the hype. It removes all my make-up  and is suitable for both face and eyes. It does't sting my eyes which is something that usually happens me with make-up removers, so this is a real bonus for me obviously!

(2)After I've removed my make-up I cleanse with Purity by Philosophy cleanser and I use this in conjunction with my Clarisonic Mia. This is a  fantastic combination for deep cleaning your skin. It definitely had an effect on the overall apperance of my skin (acne scarring, pigmentation etc.)

(3)I then tone with the Kiehels cucumber toner.  

(4)Next if needed, I apply the Origins Super Spot Treatment to any spots or pre-spot areas. Sometimes I use tree tea oil, if the area is very sore or red. I mainly use the tea tree oil to clean any extra make - up from around my nose piercing. 

(5)About twice a week I use the Bio-oil on acne scarring to help it fade. I used to use it more, but the scarring is quite well faded at this stage. 

(6)Finally, the last two steps are the same as the morning routine - I apply Origins eye cream and La Roche Posay moisturiser.

Extras

The extras are items such as exfoliators and masks that I use once to twice a week.

My two favourite scrubs are Kiehls Pineapple and Papaya Facial Scrub and MAC's Volcanic Ash Exfoliator. The Kiehls one is very gentle on the skin so I use that more often as it is less abrasive. When my skin needs it I use the MAC exfoliator as it is slightly harsher. It leaves my skin feeling very clean and refreshed.

The La Roche Posay Eau Thermale spray is a refreshing spray that I spray liberally after using one of the exfoilaters. I also sometimes use it instead of the Caudalie Beauty Elixir. 

Finally I have 2 masks that I like to use. The Bosica Black Mask is a proper mask that you leave on for about 15 minutes before peeling off. It is a product that I have instantly seen glowing results with. 

The Origins Drink Up Intensive mask is an overnight mask. It is basically like a thick moisturiser. it smells beautiful and works extremely well in rehydrating my skin.

Well done if you've made it to the end of the post! 

What's your ultimate skincare item?

Hype Review: Origins VitaZing

VitaZing and the Laura Mericer tinted moisturiser are probably the 2 most talked about and hyped up tinted moisturisers on blogs and YouTube. I went for VitaZing.

VitaZing is a lovely fresh feeling tinted moisturiser. It is very lightweight feeling product and the coverage is surprisingly good for a tinted moisturiser. It helps even out the skin tone and leaves a lovely glowing finish to the skin.

All this said, I haven’t used VitaZing that much. Why? I suppose it’s mainly because when I first got this my acne was still quite alive and I just didn’t feel comfortable with my face so exposed. However, now that my skin has improved a great deal and we are coming into summer, I will be wearing this a lot more. It is ideal for lazy days when you don’t need a full face of make-up. I also think it is perfect  for when you are on your holidays.

Is it worth the hype? Surprisingly yes. I mean it didn’t completely rock my world and I think you need to either have decent skin or be very comfortable with your skin to wear this alone. But it does leave a beautiful, glowing finish to your face, which is where I believe the hype for it comes from.

New Skincare Stuff - Clarisonic and Origins

 So my skin and I have being having a few disagreements as of late. Some minor but mostly major disagreements including a housing estate worth of spots that have taken permanent residency on my jawline and chin (without prior planning permission I might add). My favourite has to be the most recent one, though, where my skin went and completely overreacted to some product and decided to flake away a few layers of skin, leaving raw, sore and exposed skin on my cheeks. It didn't care what I thought, it just went ahead and did it. 

I decided that enough is enough. As a permanent separation from my skin is not an option, I decided to bring in a meditator to help bring a balance and happiness between my skin and I. The mediator comes in the form of the Clarisonic Mia. 

I'm sure most of you have heard of this device, which the Americans have been buzzing about for the past few years, but if you haven't, the Clarisonic is essentially a giant electric toothbrush for your face which offers deep cleansing and should assist in acne reduction and discolouration of the skin.

I have read so many promising reviews of it, so I really hope it makes a difference to my skin. Not that it is important but once I decided to get one, one of the longest decisions I took to make was which colour to get lol! I was torn between the lavender, green and yellow. Green is my favourite colour so I almost went for that but then decided to go for the primrose yellow as it will be like a little ray of sunshine to use every morning:)

Whilst I was on a new skincare binge I decided to go all out and get 2 more cult favourites, both from Origins. The VitaZing moisturiser and the GinZing eye cream.

I'm going to be using these from now on and hopefully in a few months when I do a review it will be of me gushing about how much I love them and how they have given me the most wonderful clear skin!

A word of warning: if you are ordering the Clarisonic online you may be caught by customs. Although I ordered off a UK website (Feel Unique) I was still stung with a €44 customs charge. I was certain that you couldn't be charged customs within Europe, but obviously I was wrong:/